Spirit Riders, Episode 8: Loose Ends
by chibiwriter
Summary: The Rangers are doing their post-battle analysis when Trev asks the Big Question; why didn't Dayton destroy Pleance when he had the chance?
1. No Regret

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to Disney/Haim Saban

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The city was quiet, still recovering from the ferocious monster attack of the previous week. Much the debris had already been cleared and even now, plans were being drawn up for the reconstruction. There had been the announcement of an impending wedding, of a well known and respected reporter to his PR girlfriend.

And in an underground chamber unknown to everyone but the seven people currently in it, Dayton stood and observed his young charges. They looked well, rested and happy.

Marissa was sitting on the bright yellow cushion beside James, who was sprawled on a black one. She was dressed in a brown top, over which a yellow sweater had been shrugged on. Her dark curls were in a ponytail that hung over her shoulder and her bright hazel eyes were alive with laughter. James, in contrast, was dressed all in black, from his dark hooded sweatshirt to his skater shoes. His equally dark hair was spiked away from a strong face and dark eyes grinned in a tanned face. He was of New Zealand descent and had the broad shouldered, broad chest build.

Jeanie sat just above James's head and now and then amused herself by pressing down on the gelled spikes. Her red hair was pulled into a tight braid, her bright, bright beyond blue eyes shone behind fashionable glasses. She was dressed in sneakers, three-quarter jeans and a pink top that showed off her shoulders.

Beside her, in a green short sleeved shirt over an off-white long sleeved t-shirt, sat Trevor. His dark hair was un-styled and fell messily into his almond shaped dark eyes, hidden, like Jeanie's, behind a pair of fashionable glasses. He seemed to be zoning out, but his eyes were sharp with intelligence.

A little way off, as they usually were, were David and Eva. David was an Asian descendant, like Trevor, but his hair was a shock of near white blond. It waved about his face and his eyes, a dark shocking contrast to his hair, watched with a look that would have been distant if not for the warmth behind them. He was dressed in a red t-shirt and jeans, with a dark jacket on the floor beside him. The pretty brunette sitting crossed legged on a sky blue cushion on his other side was dressed in a t-shirt of the same colour as the cushion, with bold black writing that declared her a free spirit. Her jeans rode low on her hips and her sharp green eyes slid constantly to Dayton, as if making sure he was still there.

Which, he supposed, was a normal reaction when one had been dead just last week.

"Rangers." As expected, the six teens immediately turned to look at him. Trevor shifted and the long sleeve of his shirt moved, revealing the silver bracelet he always wore.

They all wore similar bracelets, each with patterns in their signature colour. The bracelets, when needed, transformed into their morphers which, in turn, transformed them into the multicoloured heroes of legend. The Power Rangers.

This current generation of Power Rangers drew their power from the spirits of so-called mythical creatures that had once roamed the world. David was the noble Red Dragon, Eva the gentle hearted Blue Griffin. Trevor took power from the imperturbable Green Centaur while Jeanie took hers from the fiercely independent Pink Unicorn. James had the spirit of the strong willed Black Minotaur behind him and Marissa was the wild Phoenix.

They each, he thought, suited the Spirits that had chosen them perfectly. David with his cool head, natural leadership skills and unbreakable moral code. Eva with her deceptively sharp tongue, her warm heart and her ability to help everyone through most anything. Trevor with his measuring gaze, his calculating mind, his gift to analyse any situation in a split moment. Jeanie with her straight forwardness, her fierce loyalty to all close to her, her tough attitude she used to hide the softness within. James with his impetuousness, his eagerness to fight, his strong unwavering need to defend those who couldn't defend themselves. And Ris, with her warm accepting heart, her deceptively easy nature and the battle worn warrior that hid itself when not needed.

Yes, they all suited their Life Spirits to the letter.

"Dayton?" Jeanie asked when he didn't speak. "What's up?"

Jay rolled his eyes. "We all know what's up." He wiggled deeper into the soft cushion, smirked at their mentor. "He wants to do the post-battle analysis. A little late, I think. Like a week late," Jay shrugged, spread his hands. "But hey, his choice."

In answer, Jeanie bopped him on his head. "Why don't you let Dayton answer the question?"

"So answer it Dayton," David said with a grin. "Before Jay does, again."

"All right Rangers." Dayton had to smile as well. "What James said is right; I do wish to talk of the events that transpired last week. However," he added, "I do not wish to do – what is it? – a 'post-battle analysis'. I think there are some questions you wish answered."

"More than some," Trev said in a dry voice. "But who wants to start?"

Ris raised her hand and Jeanie rolled her eyes at her. "It's not school, Ris. You don't have to put your hand up."

"I know that," the brunette replied. "I just didn't want to ask a question at the same time as someone else."

"There's logic in that," Eva commented.

"What is your question, Marissa?" Dayton asked in an attempt to direct the conversation back to topic.

"What? Oh yeah," she flashed a quick grin. "Why wait a week to hold this not-post-battle analysis?"

"I can answer that," David drawled.

"Please. Do." Jeanie said wryly.

David glanced at Dayton, who inclined his head, giving the red ranger the stage. "Think about everything we went through Ris," David said, sitting up so he could look at Ris properly. "We saw Dayton die, went to only God – and Trev – knows where –"

"Actually," Trev lifted a finger, "I had no idea where I took us so, technically, only God knows where we were."

"We'll deal with that later," Jeanie said, waving a dismissive hand.

"Can I continue?" David asked, raising his eyebrows.

Eva's smile was quick and mischievous. "If you must."

He bopped her head in reply. "Thank you. What I'm pretty much saying is that we went through hell and back again – twice over. So if we'd done this thing right after, d'you really think we'd have been able to even process anything?"

"But why a week?" Ris insisted. "Why so long?"

"Hey?" Jay asked, tugging at her hair. "Aren't we allowed to a little vacation time?"

"I think what Jay said sums it all up." Jeanie said with a grin.

"Next question." Trev added.

"My turn then," Jeanie decided. "What the hell happened to me?"

Everyone looked at her. "What do you mean?" Dayton asked.

"What happened to me?" She asked. "How'd I get out of that bubble thing Pleance had us in? I mean, we tried everything; kicking, punching, everything and we couldn't get out of it. So how did I?"

Eva started to speak, but closed her mouth. Dayton inclined his head towards her. "No. Please."

She smiled. "Thanks, Dayton." Then she looked at Jeanie. "It's called Metaphase."

Jeanie blinked at her. "Beta-what?"

"Not beta," Eva said with a laugh. "Metaphase. It means you can pass through solid things, or you can make solid things pass through you."

Jay's brows furrowed. "Isn't that pretty much the same thing?"

"Not really," Eva explained. "Passing through solid things is changing the state of your body. However, passing solid things through you is changing the state of the _object_ coming towards you. It's way harder to do the latter."

"Cool," Jay said with a grin. "You're like Kitty."

"Who?" Ris asked.

"Kitty? In X-Men?"

"Hold up," Jeanie blurted out, eyes still on Eva. "How do you know that? Don't you have to touch me to do that?"

"Well…" Eva grinned. "Truth be told, I think my power's getting stronger. Or something like that. I dunno. Now I can tell what's happening or what's happened to you guys."

"Just us?" David asked. "No one else?"

She shrugged. "Nope. Just you guys. I reckon it's because I'm so close to you guys."

Dayton nodded. "Correct Eva. On both your answers."

"Teacher's pet," Jeanie muttered under her breath.

A small cushion winged out, hit Jeanie on her temple. The others burst out laughing while Jeanie just grinned gamely and tucked the cushion under her arm. "How long have you wanted to say that to someone other than yourself?" Ris wondered aloud.

"Shut up Ris."

She just laughed in reply. "My turn," she announced.

"Again?" Trev asked in a dry voice.

She reached out, hit him lightly on his leg. "What happened to _me_?"

"Hey," Jeanie complained in a good natured voice. "Copy cat."

Ris's reply was to stick her tongue out at the red head. "Oh so mature," Jeanie said, rolling her eyes.

"Please," Dayton held up a hand before it could become worse, though it rarely did. "Marissa, in answer to your question; nothing happened to you."

"Oh yeah?" She raised her eyebrows. "So why did I – according to Jay – die?"

"Jay!" David glared at his cousin, who held up his hands.

"She gave me puppy-dog eyes! No one can resist her puppy-dog eyes!"

"Point," Jeanie commented.

"Rangers!" Dayton resisted the urge to rub his temples, where he could feel a headache brewing. Sometimes, he could not help but wonder if asking teenagers to be Rangers was the best thing. But most times, he thought, watching Jay smile up at Jeanie and David just sigh and shake his head, a rueful smile tugging at his lips, he was sure he'd made the perfect choice.

"Marissa, you did not die," Dayton said, attempting to – once more – steer the conversation back to topic. "When you resurrected me, you used up much of your energy. Since it is the first time you have resurrected someone – and as I had been dead a while and so, used up more energy than usual – you slipped into that coma-like state. The more you resurrect, or heal someone, the more used to the energy drain you will become and the less likely you will be to pass out."

"So her healing power is just a by-product to her resurrection power?" David asked.

"No," Dayton corrected. "Her healing power is the build-up to her resurrection power. The first step to bringing someone back is healing what had forced them to leave."

"That makes sense," Jeanie decided.

"What doesn't," Trev said in carefully modulated tones that everyone knew meant he was about to say something important, "is why you backed away."

"Me?" Dayton asked.

"You." Slanted dark eyes bore into his. "Why'd you back away Dayton? You had Pleance down. He was weak. Perfect opportunity to end him – end all of this. We're saved, earth is saved, yadda yadda. So why didn't you?"

The chamber was suddenly filled with silence so tense, Eva actually hunched her shoulders to try shift the weight of it. Dayton didn't seem to be looking at them, didn't seem to be looking at anything. His gaze had turned inward, as if to something none of them could see.

Or, Jeanie thought, to a time none of them knew about.

"Dayton?" Ris asked gently.

"I have regrets," he said in a distant voice. "I am only human – for that I am millenias old. I have many regrets."

"So you regret not killing Pleance?" Jeanie asked.

He closed his eyes, took a deep breath. "No."

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_A/N: I'm so so so (a thousand times so) sorry for the HUGELY long delay in updating my series. Truth be told, this story went through many reincarnations. I hope you'll bear with me as I tie up a few loose ends from the episodes six and seven. _

_And, oh, yes, more shockers await..._


	2. Dayton's Past

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to Disney/Haim Saban

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**

The rangers' expressions were no less than what he expected; blurred shock, stunned silence, and, slowly, anger began to drain away the shock.

But, before they could start talking, before they could start arguing, David stood up. "Don't say anything," he said, "any of you. Let's just let Dayton explain to us what the hell he means by that." He looked at their mentor, who stood still as the stone they were surrounded by.

"Yeah Dayton," Jeanie butted in, her voice dark and on the edge of dangerous. "Explain to us what the hell you mean by saying you don't regret not killing Pleance and ending all of this."

"To do so," Dayton replied, struggling for some semblance of control, "would mean telling you part of my history. My life's story, I think you refer to such a thing as."

"That could take years," Ris said.

"So shorten it," Jay said in an abrupt voice. "Tell us the relevant bits."

"But for God's sakes, Dayton," Eva added. "Just tell us."

They were all looking at him, waiting. He took a breath for courage, summoned up the memories and prepared to speak.

"My time was millenias ago, when magic was an everyday thing and not something dismissed as something for children. I was born under the full moon, when it was at its peak. And, as the moon slipped from that peak, my brother was born.

"I was named Dayton and my brother was named Draden. We grew together with our parents, with our sisters and brothers. All in our village – all in our world, - knew of the Life Spirits. Their history, their nature, was taught to us from the moment we could understand.

"The Life Spirits were guardians of the world. They kept the balance between nature, sky, earth and water. How they did so, we did not know. Even some things, the Life Spirits kept from us. Yet they were mortal, as you and I are."

"Wait. Wait." Jeanie waved a hand. "You gave us the impression they weren't. That they were _im_mortal."

"Jeanie." David leant forward, legs sliding forward, elbows bracing on his knees. "Let him talk."

Dayton nodded at the blond haired teen. "Thank you David.

"The Life Spirits were mortal, dying as you and I. But they can do something we can not. With the Phoenix's power, they were resurrected time and time again. As long as the Phoenix had enough energy for his power, they would live once more. They were reborn, but they still had to grow up. They were powerful beings – but not until they were fully grown. Until they were, they needed a Guardian. They chose me three days after my birth.

"Why they chose me, I do not know. But I was brought up, knowing they would die and be resurrected and I would be their guardian."

There was something, some slight inflection in his voice, that made Eva reach out, touch his arm. He blinked, stared at her as if he couldn't quite remember who she was. She tried a smile to entice him back. "It was strange," he managed, slowly becoming aware of the rangers' worried gazes. "Strange and difficult, growing up knowing such a responsibility awaited you."

"But you bore it," Trev said, in his calm voice. "And I wager you bore it well."  
Jeanie gave him an askance look. "Have you been reading your sisters' romance novels again? The ones all set in Britain and focused around, what is it?, the British 'ton'?"

"Shut up," Trev muttered, even as a slow flush coloured his lips.

The others laughed and broke up the unspoken tension that had filled the room. Dayton felt his shoulders loosen up as Eva dropped her arm and relaxed back into her cushion.

"Why would anyone read those kind of books is beyond me," Jay commented.

"For the romance of it all," Jeanie said and shrugged when he looked at her. "Well, that's my theory."

"I like it," Ris said with a dreamy smile. "The idea that true love conquers all…"

"Sounds like a load of crock." Jay snorted.

"You know the old saying; love makes the world go round." Trev said.

"Isn't it _money_ makes the world go round?" Eva asked.

"That's the cynic's version of the old saying."

David leant forward. "Guys." They looked at him and he nodded at Dayton. "Go on Dayton."

Dayton started, and met David's straight gaze. He nodded. "As it goes, I grew older, and stronger. Upon the eve of my eighteen summer – our, mine and my brother's, eighteenth summer – the Life Spirits died. They died together, a few miles from our village, in the blaze of the Phoenix's death fire. The news was brought to me by a traveller who had witnessed their demise and I was brought to them.

"I knew well my tasks and performed them. I kept the ashes of the Phoenix together, even when the wind wished to scatter them. All the ashes of the Phoenix needed to be together for it to be able to resurrect itself. And with the dawn of the sun came the chick from the ashes.

"It was bald, like a bird with all its feathers plucked from its body. It was – and continues to be – one of the ugliest things I have ever had the unfortunate luck to rest my eyes upon."

The rangers, as he expected, burst out laughing. He, too, had to smile at the memory of his complete and utter horror at the sight of the newly reborn Phoenix.

"At first I thought I had made a mistake. Then the most extraordinary thing happened. This chick closed it eyes and let out the song of the Phoenix."

"I wish I'd been there to hear it," Ris said in a wistful voice.

"You do," Dayton said with a smile. "Every time you hear your Zord's cry, you hear part of the Phoenix's song. It is the most stirring part, the part that called our people to arms, the part that could make flowers bloom and trees sprout leaves."

"Wow." Eva grinned. "Wow."

"Wow I think is the right exclamation."

"Cool," Jay added with a grin.

"What happened next?" Jeanie asked in a soft voice. Trev could see she was completely drawn into the story Dayton painted so vividly. And, he admitted, so was he.

"The song wove around me as I sat there. I do not know if it were my eyes, the dawn or if it truly happened but I saw a stream of golden light come from the chick's mouth and bathe the remains of the Life Spirits.

"And I saw the babe forms of the Life Spirits rise from their remains. The Minotaur, the Centaur, the Unicorn, the Griffin and, finally, the Dragon."

"What did they look like?" Trev asked, eyes sparkling with interest. "Did they look like mini-versions of themselves? Or were they like the Phoenix?"

"Bald?" Jeanie asked with a laugh.

"No." Dayton laughed as well. "No, they were not bald. Only the Phoenix was bald."

"Tell us what they looked like Dayton." Eva said eagerly. "Come on, Dayton. Describe them to us."

He continued to smile. "The Minotaur looked like a calf with a boy's body. It had no horns and its body was weak as a human baby's is. The Centaur, too, help the torso of a baby, but its body and legs were as thin and spindly as a foal's. The Unicorn had the form of a foal as well, and its horn was nothing more than a nub in the centre of its forehead. The Griffin, the Griffin is more difficult to describe. Its head was, yes, bald as it has the head of an eagle, but its body was furred, and that of a lion cub. The wings on its back were small and stuck to its body. The Dragon was a miniature version of itself, complete with claws and teeth and wings. But it could not fly and it was blind."

"Blind." Jay snorted with delight and looked at David. "Blind," he repeated.

"Shut up Jay. Go on Dayton."

"I was to take care of them in their home. So I gathered them in my arms – the Dragon attempted to bite me – and brought them there. It was there I protected them and raised them, and it was during this time of their upbringing that they gifted me with the powers I have to this day, and thus fulfilled my role of Guardian. Part of it. There was more to come – more than any of we could ever have seen."

"More…more of what?" Eva asked, a sudden sense of foreboding overcoming her.

"Gregon."

Tension filled the chamber at the name. It wasn't often they spoke it. It was Pleance they dealt with day to day. Gregon rarely came up. He was more an omnipresent shadow that loomed behind Pleance; something they knew was there but was not real to them yet.

Ris's voice filled the quiet chamber. "What did he do?"

"Attacked. I was barely into my twentieth summer. The Life Spirits were still not at full strength. They grew up faster than we but it would a few summers yet before they were still at full strength. Gregon knew this and took full advantage.

"He attacked at night, as he knew I couldn't see as well as he in the dark. But the Dragon awoke as he approached and in turn awoke me and warned me of the danger to them. I, thankfully, did not have to fight him. I used the gift from the Centaur to hide us from him. He could not find the chamber in which we hid. His roar…it was like nothing I ever heard. Anger and hate and such venom. 'Tis a volatile mix."

"It wasn't the only time he attacked?"

Dayton shook his head at Jeanie's question. "Only the first."

"Tell us about the rest."

"No. There is only one I truly need to tell you about. The one of the first time I met Pleance."

The rangers stilled. Here it was. What this whole story had been leading up to. They only prayed that Dayton's reason would be enough.

"Tell us," David said in a soft voice.

"It was during my twenty-third winter. I was taken completely by surprise. I was gathering firewood to heat our chamber. It was fun, always, to watch the Dragon light the wood with a mere breath."

"Dayton." Jeanie's voice was soft but hard as steel. "Stop stalling."

"Jeanie," David's voice was a low warning.

Dayton shook his head. "It is all right David. She is right; I am stalling." He took a deep breath. "I…I straightened from picking dead logs and there he was."

"He must have blended well into the back ground," Ris commented in an attempt to lighten the strain filled chamber.

"Apart from his clothes." Jay added in a dry voice.

But Dayton was shaking his head. And he was speaking. "No. He stood out as much as I did. The dead forest was filled with black trunks and white snow and he was as easy to spot as I.

"I asked him his business there. None came to visit me as I was always busy and had no time to talk so, naturally, I wished to know what he was doing there. He did not answer – not in words anyway. His laser bolt nearly hit my feet. It would have, had I not dodged out of the way.

"I lost my firewood. I could not – would not – believe what had happened. I dodged laser bolt after laser bolt. Then he came in closer, tried hand to hand attack. And, still, I found myself powerless to attack.

"He would have killed me, had I not suddenly found my senses. I managed to repel him. I injured him, but not as much as he had injured me. And he finally spoke. I do not think I will ever forget his words, no matter how many more millenias I live.

"'My name is Pleance. Remember it well. I live only to serve Gregon and to kill you. I will show you no mercy and think not I ever will. You will die by my hand, Dayton. That is my vow.'

"After the encounter, I gathered once more the firewood as we had sore need for it. And then I went back and informed the Life Spirits that my twin brother had attacked me."


	3. He's Evil

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to Disney/Haim Saban

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**

Silence filled the chamber, yet Dayton's words seemed to fill the still air. Finally, Eva spoke, in a slightly strangle voice. "Pleance…Pleance is your brother?"

"Your _twin_ brother?" Jay added in a shell shocked voice.

"Brother of heart, blood and womb."

Because the silence seemed to weigh even more heavily on him now, Dayton slid down to the floor. He hardly noticed when Ris pushed a cushion so that he sat on it instead of the floor. Jeanie dropped her head, as if the knowledge had suddenly turned her head to lead. Trev closed his eyes, let his head drop back. Jay stared into nothing, trying to work out everything in his head. Ris curled up on her cushion and looked at Dayton as if reassessing him. Eva pulled her legs up, chin on her knees, arms wrapped around her shins. David just sat, chin balanced on his joined hands, reflecting, reassessing.

Finally, he spoke; "I don't blame you."

The others looked at him. "What?" Jeanie asked.

"I don't blame Dayton for not killing Pleance. How can I?"

"What're you talking about?" Jay leapt to his feet, stared down at David like his hair had suddenly turned black.

"I'm talking about not blaming Dayton for not killing Pleance."

"Why not?"

"Well…because Pleance is his brother."

"And that makes all the difference?"

"Well, duh." Jean rose to her feet as well, pinned Jay with her bright blue eyes. "It makes all the difference in the world. I couldn't kill Declan or Liam."

"I couldn't imagine even hurting any of my brothers," Ris added.

"As much as I hate them," Eva admitted, "I wouldn't intentionally kill any of my brothers. Or even my cousin, rat bastard though he is."

That managed to tickle a laugh out of everyone, Dayton included.

"None of us can imagine killing any of our siblings," David said in a quiet voice. "You don't have siblings, so you don't know what it's like."

"I can imagine," Jay said in a subdued voice. "It'd be impossible for me to kill any of you."

"We didn't mean for it to come out like that," Ris started.

"I get you." Jay grinned. "No problem."

He sat down again and Jeanie did so as well. And Trev spoke up; "no matter if he's your brother or not, we can't afford something like that to happen again. Ris can't resurrect Dayton – you – every time you fight with Pleance."

David looked uncomfortable. "He's got a point there."

"It's been millenniums since he was your brother – really your brother. He's tried and tried and he's succeeded in killing you. He's obviously gotten over the fact you're his twin brother. Maybe it's time you do."

"Well, there's the fact he's _evil_," Jeanie said, looking at her cousin.

Trev looked back at her, brown eyes intense behind his glasses. "Yes, he's evil. That's my whole point." He shifted his attention back to their mentor. "He's been evil for a long time now Dayton. He stopped being your brother the minute he tried to kill you, the minute he became evil. You have to see that."

"I see it," Dayton said, his voice soft and immeasurably sad. "And I know it. But my heart has yet to accept it."

"How do you accept – and I mean _really_ in your heart and in your gut accept – that your brother, or your sister, hates you and wants to kill you?" Ris wondered aloud.

"Especially if they're younger than you," Eva added. "I mean, if they're younger than you, you're always looking out for them, right? I used to do that for the twins, until they became totally annoying of course."

"Yeah," David agreed, thinking of Mary Ann. He looked at Trev. "You know how it is."

"I know. I'd kill for Sara and Michelle. But this is different."

"What we're saying," Eva shot out, "is that you can't just change your feelings like that. What, your sister hates you so you immediately hate her back? It doesn't work that way. It takes time and, sometimes, even time can't change your feelings, no matter the circumstance. That's why everyone looks for love. Because it's the strongest feeling out there. Once you love someone, really, really love them, you can't go back."

"That's the difference between us. That what makes us good." They all looked at Ris. Her hazel eyes were, a rare occurrence, serious. "We can love. Pleance can't – or he's ceased being able to. That's what makes us good and that's what makes us human. He thinks it makes us weak, that's why he laughed at Dayton when Dayton, when you didn't kill him. What he doesn't realise, or can't remember, is that it can also make us strong."

The chamber was silent for a long drawn out moment. Ris began to look nervous. Then Jay sat back, still staring at her, and shook his head. "Man. No matter what anyone says about you, you're _not_ an air head."

"Thanks. I think."

"It's like we said before," David said. "You can see and perceive things we can't. That's a gift you know."

"One Jay can't claim to have."

"Hey!" Jay glared at Jeanie for her crack. She just grinned and Eva laughed. "I'm surrounded by smart asses."

"You're one too," Trev pointed out.

Dayton let himself smile. It seemed the tension created by his story had been lessened, if not broken. The rangers were relaxed once more, joking with each other. And the revelation that Pleance was his twin brother did not seem to break their trust in him. That, he realised, was what he had been most afraid of.

"We can't help it," Jeanie decided over everyone's laughter and comments. 'We were born that way."

"I think it's also something to do with being Power Rangers," Eva said thoughtfully. "From what I gather, everyone who's been a Power Ranger has been a wise ass."

"Must be something to do with the suit," Trev speculated. "All the power."

"True," Jeanie allowed. "But we were wise asses before we became Rangers."

"We can't deny that," David said with a grin.

"Rangers," Dayton said, deciding that perhaps it was time to get the conversation back on track. "Please. Are there anymore questions?"

"Questions?" Jay asked, indicating just how far off track they'd gotten. "About what?"

"About the events that occurred last week."

"Oh. That." And he grinned.

David, though, was serious as a thought occurred to him. "How'd he find you?"

"What?" Dayton looked at the red ranger.

"Pleance," David expanded. "How'd he know where to find you?"

"Yeah," Jeanie said, sitting up. "He knew exactly where to go to find you. And us, come to think of it. How did he?"

"I…I do not know," Dayton said softly. "I have been thinking of the reason and I still do not know how he could have found you."

"What?" David leaned forward, forearms braced on his knees. "No ideas."

"None." In one smooth surge, Dayton gained his feet and began to pace. "I have turned it over and over in my head and I still do not know how he came to know the entrance of the portal."

"And how he knew exactly where to find us." Trev added.

Dayton looked at them. "That I know how."

Jeanie's eyes sharpened. "Spill."

David winced at her demand but Dayton held up a hand to stop the admonition he knew was on the ranger's lips. "From the day you were born, to the day you turned seventeen, there was a protective spell the surrounded you, shielding you from evil's eyes. Pleance's eyes."

"Wait." This time it was Trev who held up a hand to stop speech, Trev who leant forward. "Protective spell? What protective spell?"

Dayton's brow furrowed. "Did I not tell you of this?"

"Obviously not." Jay's voice was short and testy.

"I apologise. There is a lot I have not told you, is there not?"

"There's a bit," Eva said. "But you can tell us now."

"This spell I speak of. It was…triggered I suppose you could say, upon the day you were born, upon the day the powers of the Lift Spirits entered your bodies. It was to protect you, so Pleance could not find you in your growing years."

"What happened when we turned seventeen?" David asked quietly.

"The protective spell lifted." Dayton said simply. "Your powers, the powers given to you by the Life Spirits, became fully developed and you had no need for the protective spell anymore. You could take care of yourself."

"And that's when Pleance found us." It wasn't a question. It was a statement and spoken in a hard voice to match the hard look in Trev's eyes.

Dayton nodded.

"Wait, wait." Eva put her hands up. "I thought you said we couldn't tap into our powers without our ranger powers."

"Marissa cannot tap into _her_ power without her ranger powers. Hers is the most draining power and, as such, she needed the boost the ranger powers provided to be able to access it. That is why you, Eva," he added, turning to her fully, "have always had a good sixth sense. That is why Trev has always been able to find whatever he looks for. That is why Jeanie sometimes has problems swimming."

"Wait, wait." Jeanie frowned. "What does my power have to do with my swimming?"

"You mean your inability to?" Jay received a smack on the head for his trouble.

"When you are in a foreign environment, your powers tend to flare."

"Flare?"

"How do you say? 'Kick out' perhaps?"

"Yeah." Jeanie nodded. "I get that."

"All right. When you are in a foreign environment, your powers tend to kick out, in response to your fear and apprehension. You have problems swimming because when you are in the water, you try to metaphase through it, and you end up panicking because you cannot completely metaphase out of the water. Therefore why you cannot swim."

Eva stared at the red head. "You can't swim."

Jeanie shrugged but she looked a little annoyed. "I've never been able to get the hang of it."

"There's one thing I don't understand," Jay spoke up. They all turned to face him. "Why'd he wait for Eva to come here? We all turned seventeen seven months ago. Jeanie's our baby," he added with a grin and earned another smack on the head. "So why'd he wait for Eva to come here, knowing that when she did, we'd all be together and stronger."

"He did not."

"Eh?"

"Oh, so eloquent Jay," Jeanie said in a sarcastic voice.

"Rangers," Dayton said before it could escalate. "As I said; he did not. At least, I do not think he did. I do not know what Pleance thinks, and I do not profess to. But I think he did not mean to wait for Eva to join you. Fate was what brought you here and if Pleance knew you were coming, I think he would have tried taking Marissa sooner.

"I believe he was building his power again, making sure he was strong enough to take the Phoenix."

"That makes sense," Trev said with a nod. "I take it that, before, he wasn't strong enough to take on the Life Spirits – any of them?"

"No. That is why all his battles were with me."

"That must have sucked."

Dayton managed to smile at Eva's comment. "Yes, it did very much 'suck'."

"So here's what we got." David began to tick off the points, one by one. "Jeanie's newfound power is 'metaphase'. Ris can heal as well as resurrect. Pleance is Dayton' twin brother. We had a protective spell that hid us from Pleance for the first seventeen years of our lives. And we have no idea how Pleance figured out where the entrance to the command base is."

"We might have to change it," Jeanie said. "Seeing as he can now enter it."

But Dayton was shaking his head. "Pleance can never enter this place."

David's brows shot up. "Oh yeah? Why?"

"It will only accept you. And I," Dayton added belatedly. "It reacts to the energy in our bodies and the portal will only open where you are here. But Jeanie is right. We will have to change the location of the portal."

"Why?" Jay asked. "You just said, there's no way Pleance can get in."

"Because he can attack us when we get out. Duh." Jeanie rolled her eyes as Dayton nodded his head.

"That is correct."

Someone's watch beeped somewhere. They looked around. David looked at his watch. "And in comes reality. We'll have to continue this some other time guys. Remember, we promised Uncle Dustin we'd help him move stock into the shop today?"

"Yeah." Jay got up, letting a little groan as his muscles stretched in protest. "Man. Pins and needles."

Ris leapt to her feet, danced over to haul Eva to hers. "Come on! Dad says he's got some new spark plugs and, if there's left over from the old stock, he'll give me them. I'll put them on your bike."

"Why bother?" Eva asked dryly. "It's not like I use it anymore."

"Doesn't mean you should just let it go." They headed up the stairs, after waving goodbye to Dayton.

At the top of the stairs, the portal whirled open, they stepped through. And Ris nearly walked right into a Frisson.


	4. Trapped!

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to Disney/Haim Saban

* * *

**

"Shit!"

The exclamation came from Jay as they all backed away from the three Frissons carrying the large dangerous looking weapon that was pointed straight at them. Something whirred – it took a while to realise it was the weapon. Then a laser blasted from its drill like mouth.

They all threw themselves in different directions – Jay, Trev and Ris to the right, Jeanie and Eva to the left. And David found himself stumbling back through the portal.

The laser hit the portal as it whirled closed. And it disappeared, as did the Frissons.

Shoving her hair from her face, Eva rose painfully to her hands and knees. She'd managed to find a sharp stone on her wild dive that had cut pretty deep into her palm. Jeanie of course, she noticed sourly, had managed to so a somersault and land perfectly a couple of feet away. Damn ninja senses.

"What the hell was that?" Jay demanded, brushing off his shorts and pulling Eva to her feet.

"No freaking idea," Trev replied as he raised his bracelet cum morpher to his mouth. "Dayton? Did the laser do any damage?" There was no reply.

Eva looked to where the portal usually appeared. "Why isn't David coming back out?"

Jeanie looked over as well. "I don't know."

Jay moved towards the spot – and walked right over it. His eyes widened. "Oh shit."

"Dayton?" Trev was still trying to get him through the morpher. "Dayton? Damnit! He isn't answering."

"We can't get through the portal," Jeanie said. "It's disappeared."

"And I think that means David can't get out," Eva said.

"Can't raise Dayton," Trev added, finally dropping his hand.

"Shit," Jay repeated.

"What now?" Ris asked, hazel eyes troubled. "What do we do now?"

"I…" Trev closed his eyes as everyone looked at him. "Shit. I have no idea."

* * *

In the chamber, David pounded his fists on the rock wall he'd never known the portal hid. "What the _hell_?"

"David."

At Dayton's voice, David turned, eyes blazing. "What the hell happened?"

"I do not know. It seems Pleance has found a way to close the portal. I have attempted opening it but it has proved fruitless thus far."

David loped down the stairs so he could pace. "What about the others? Are they all right?"

"I do not know."

David whirled to face the man who had made him a ranger. "What do you mean you don't know?"

"I have tried to call them but there was no reply." Dayton hesitated. "I'm afraid that when the Frissons destroyed the portal, they not only managed to destroy our way in and out but also our means of communication."

David stared at him in rising horror. "Are you saying that we're trapped in here with no way out and no way to communicate with the others?"

Dayton nodded, looking troubled. "It seems so."

"Well…shit."

* * *

"Do you think we can open the portal up again?" Jeanie asked, looking over to where it usually was.

"How?" Trev challenged. "Jay hasn't even found his Spirit power yet, and none of us has the power to open portals. We don't even know how Dayton opens the damn portal up!"

"What about communication?" Eva asked. "Maybe you could look at our morphers, find a way to open the line again."

Trev shook his head. "Impossible. I have no idea how or what Dayton rigged these stuff with. Remember that time Jeanie and I tried configuring the command panels and shut down the whole place? If I try fiddling with these, we might lose our ability to morph."

"What about your Relocation?" Ris suggested. "You could relocate there, get Dayton and David out."

Again, Trev shook his head. "I haven't got it right yet. Every time I try relocation, I end up miles from where I want to be. I can't risk it."

"Please, Trev," Jay said suddenly, "try control your overwhelming enthusiasm."

Trev's eyes, sharp and bright, slanted to his cousin. "I'm not being a pessimist, I'm being realistic."

"I bet that's the same excuse your dad uses too," Jeanie shot back.

"Shut up. Don't bring my dad into this."

"Guys! Guys!" Eva shouted over the escalating voices and she stepped between the two, shoving them back a pace. "Calm down. We so do not need this right now."

Trev was still tense but, seeing Jeanie's terse nod, he slowly relaxed his body. "You're right. I'm sorry. It's just…"

"Just what?"

"Well, Ris is right. What are we going to do? The two people we rely on the most – David and Dayton – are trapped in the command base with no way of contacting us. Pleance might let loose with a monster and his band of merry Frissons at any moment, which will leave us doubly screwed because we'll have to fight them _and_ find a way to release David and Dayton. So, what do we do? Well?" He asked when no one answered him.

"Sorry," Jay said at length. "Just trying to imagine Frissons being merry."

"Like Robin Hood's merry men," Ris chirped in brightly. "Think they sing and dance in their spare time?"

"I thought we'd established Frissons can't talk."

"You established it," Ris said to Jeanie. "I didn't."

"Hey," Trev said, feeling they'd gotten way off track. "Focus."

"Sorry." Ris turned, flashed him a smile. And he found himself helpless to keep a straight face. He let out a laugh that released some more of the tension in him.

"God. I think only we can go off on wondering if Frissons can sing and dance when our leader and our mentor are stuck in some magic chamber."

Eva grinned. "That's the beauty of us; we know when it's time to release some anxiety."

"We just don't realise we know it," Jeanie added with a short laugh.

"But seriously guys," Trev said once she'd wound down. "Has anyone got any ideas – other than the three we just ran through?"

They looked at each other, at him. Shrugged. "Let's call Uncle Cam," Jeanie suggested.

"Why?"

"Well, from what I can pull out of my dad – by slow torturous degrees by the way – he was their team's techie. He handled communications, Zord maintenance, all that jazz. So maybe we should talk to him, get his take on this."

"That…that is an _excellent_ idea," Trev said with a triumphant look on his face. "Let's get moving."

Eva grinned at him as they started running. "Since when did you become leader?"

Trev blinked, would have slowed except Jay shoved him forward again. "I don't know…everyone just looked at me, and asked me, so I just started thinking."

Eva's smile was soft. "Just like David. You're a natural leader, Trev. It just doesn't show, not that often."

He looked at her, eyes alert behind shining lenses. "And you. You can pin people down with one glance, can't you?"

She shrugged. "Mostly."

"Hey," Jay called from up ahead. He'd overtaken them a while back. "Can you get a move on? I'd like to be there before night falls."

"Now there's someone who would never make a good leader."

"Oh he would," Eva said in objection to Trev's mutter as they picked up the pace. "It's just a matter of him reigning in that impatience and you guys giving him a chance."

"Like I said, he'd never make it to leader."

Eva burst out laughing as they sped past the others.

* * *

Leanne turned, surprised, when five hot sweaty teens burst through the front door. "Mum!" Trev, at the forefront of the mass, spotted her first. "Where's dad?"

"I don't know. I think he might be at the thunder academy with Hunter. He said something about it this morning."

"You have _got_ to be kidding me."

Leanne raised a brow at her son's tone. "I assure you, I am not. What did you want him for?"

"Nothing much."

Leanne raised her other brow and walked over to her son. She inspected his face with a slow tracking face. "Liar."

Trev coloured. "Uh…"

"If you think you can get away with lying to me Trevor, you've got another thing coming. Tell me what's the matter."

"Nothing. I swear –"

"David and Dayton are trapped Aunt Leanne. We need Uncle Cam's help to get them out."

Leanne looked at Jeanie approvingly, then looked at her son. "See? Now there's a girl with brains. Call him on his cell; you know he takes it with him where ever he goes," she added, leaving the room. Trev watched her open a door and walk down into the basement which housed, he knew, her home office.

"I completely forgot about that," Ris said, picking up the hall phone and dialling in Cam's number.

"How could we?" Jay asked. "The things practically attached to Uncle Cam."

"Like Trev's laptop's surgically attached to him?" Jeanie asked, sniggering.

Trev glowered at them but they just grinned at him, Ris with the phone to her ear. Then he folded. "Oh I give up. Trying to discipline you guys is like trying to decode the Navy Command encryption."

Jay raised his brows at Jeanie. "Do you know what he just said?"

"Yes. And I'm not translating." She looked at Ris. "Hasn't he picked up yet?"

"Yep. Hi Uncle Cam!"

"Put it on speaker phone," Eva suggested. "That way you don't have to repeat everything he says."

"Good idea." Ris pressed the necessary button, replaced the phone in its cradle. Cam's slightly crackly voice filled the hall.

"Hello Ris. Is there a reason you're calling me from my own house?"

"Yep. We came here to find you but you weren't here so then Aunt Leanne suggested we call you on your cell, so I did."

"Right. And by we, I take it you mean you, my son, and the rest of your little gang?"

"All except one. David's in trouble, dad. We need your help."

Cam was quiet for a long while. "What sort of trouble?"

"Uh…you know that thing you did with Uncle Shane, Uncle Dustin, Aunt Tori, Uncle Blake, and Uncle Hunter?"

"How could I forget? Do you need me there or do you think we can go through this over the phone."

"I'd…I'd prefer you to be here."

"Then I'm there. Give me a few minutes. Wait in your room. All of you," he added.

Trev nodded. "Hurry dad."

* * *

Trev's room was a mixture of the extreme sports all the cousins were obsessed with, martial arts, and all the computer paraphernalia all good geeks surrounded themselves with. His room was, surprisingly, white, with only a few slashes of colour around. Most of the slashes of colour were, of course, green.

"Your room's always kind of creeped me out," Ris admitted in a bid to dispel the silence. She looked around. "All this white."

"I like it."

"Got something against colour boyo?" Jay asked.

"I like white." Trev repeated. "It's nice and clean."

"It's also cold," Jeanie added, picking up a bright pink ball that lay beside the guts of a computer's CPU. "What're you doing to this baby, Trev?"

He looked at it. "I don't know yet. I've only taken it apart."

Curiously, Eva picked up a large green slab with metal wires and plastic things glued to it. "What's this?"

"That's the mother board," Trev replied, taking it from her and carefully placing it back on the table.

"It contains the computer's memory," Jeanie explained at Eva's puzzled expression. "Essentially, it's like its brain."

"Pretty much," Trev agreed. He picked up a Rubik's cube and began fiddling with it.

Cam walked in. He was pretty much an older version of Trev, down to the light green and white stripped shirt he wore. He closed the door behind him, looked at the five teens through wire rimmed glasses. "All right, I'm here. What's the matter?"

It was Trev who explained to him what had happened. At the end, Cam was sitting on the foot of Trev's bed, staring into space. "What is it exactly you want me to do?"

Trev shrugged, doubt beginning to settle in now that his father hadn't come out with a handy solution right off bat. "I don't now. According to Jeanie, you used to be Wind Ranger' techie, right?"

A half smile lifted Cam's face. "Right. But I haven't done anything like that in almost twenty years."

"But you still remember how to, right?"

"Of course I do." Cam rose to his feet. "Looks like there's only one thing to do."

The current rangers scrambled to their feet, staring at him as he headed to the door. "Only one thing to do?" Ris repeated. "What is that?"

At the door, Cam turned and this time his smile was full and made him look much younger. "Go to Ninja Ops."

* * *

_A/N: I'm not sure if skateboarding counts as an extreme sport but, oh well..._


	5. Ninja Ops

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to Disney/Haim Saban

* * *

**

Ninja Ops was, Cam explained, the deep underground chamber where the rangers of Ninja Storm had spent much of their time training and learning under their Sensei. It had also been the home of Sensei Watanabe, Cam and, later on, Hunter and Blake. Jogging down the steps, Cam continued the story; "Lothor almost destroyed it when he got in here to kill your grand father but its main structure was still standing. So we decided to rebuild it, just in case. It's not exactly like the old Ninja Ops but it's close enough." He placed his palm on a hand shaped scanner. As if it had been a switch, the whole chamber lit up.

Light after light flickered on, lighting up a space about half the size of the current command base. There was a low Japanese style table in the centre of the room. Under it were six different coloured cushions. A little library of scrolls, with a raised floor, was tucked into a corner. One wall was really a sliding door, the end of which was ajar. But what fascinated Trev and Jeanie was the large computer that dominated much of the end wall. In front of it was curved chair that, when Trev touched it, swivelled as if it had a mind of its own.

Though the rest of Ninja Ops was lit up and now buzzing the quiet hum of electricity, the computer remained dead and blank faced. "Why didn't this switch on?"

"Must be some problem with the wires," Cam replied, pushed the chair out of the way. With a grunt, he lowered himself to the floor, to the gap which the chair hid. He wriggled in it, hands groping through the dark for dusty wires. He yelped.

Trev ducked his head under. "Dad? What's the matter? You all right?"

Cam wriggled out, shaking two fingers. "I'm fine Trev. Just got a little shock, that's all." He righted his glasses, rose to his feet and pulled his chair over.

Trev frowned. "You could have just told me what to do. I've got a thunder affinity, I wouldn't have been hurt."

"I could have," Cam allowed as the computer whirled to life, "but what would have been the fun in that?"

The screen flicked on, displaying the sign of the wind ninja academy. Then it went through a series of images, fizzed and would have died with Jay hadn't kicked it.

"Jay!" Trev glared at him but Cam hushed his son.

"It's all right. Looks like Jay gave this old thing the jolt it needed to get going. Sometimes, what these things need is a good boot. Remember Hayley?"

"Hayley Viktor?" Trev asked. "Sure, your old uni friend, right?"

"Right. She was searching for Tommy Oliver – he'd been captured by Mesagog. Anyway, she was searching through Mesagog's portals when Conner McKnight kicked the computer. Of course, it died. But when Hayley rebooted it, she was able to locate the portal that would take them to Tommy." All the time he'd began talking, Cam's fingers had been racing over the unmarked keys of the keyboard, running through the computer's programs to make sure all were in working order.

"See?" Jay grinned. "All those times you kept telling me off for hitting my stupid computer were for nothing."

"Well, seeing as you were punching the screen, I think I was right to tell you off," Trev shot back.

Jeanie ignored them as she leant over to check out the figures scrolling over the screen. "What are you doing?"

"I'm running through our communication programs. I'll try find out which frequency you guys have been using; maybe I can tap into it and contact David."

Ris had, meanwhile, began looking through the scroll library with Eva. She slowly unrolled a scroll that was so old she was half afraid it would crumble under her fingers. It had once been torn, she could see that, but it had been craftily repaired and was obviously a prophecy. A prophecy, she realised, that had been long fulfilled. She read of Lothor and his army, of the capture of all the ninjas and the destruction of the ninja academies. And she read of the three heroes that would unite and save the world.

The sketches of them showed three teens around her age. They were dressed in coloured suits, with their helmets in the crook of the elbows. One was a trim, leanly muscled girl with flowing blonde hair. The one in the middle wore red and his expression was grave. The last was taller than the other two and his curly brown hair could have used a good run through with a comb. "Oh my god!"

The others turned to her. Even Cam stopped running through his programs to turn and look at her. "What's up Ris?" Eva shifted so she could look at the scroll.

Ris lifted it, realised it was facing her, turned it over so everyone could see it. "It's a prophecy," she said in a hushed voice. "About my dad, David's mum and Jay's dad. It's about how they saved the world."

Jeanie burst out; "what about the other rangers? And Uncle Cam? They saved the world as well."

"Actually," Cam rose, leaving the programs to their scanning. He crossed the room to take the scroll from Ris to inspect it. "This prophesizes how they defeated a great evil, that great evil being Lothor."

"But you _all_ defeated Lothor," Jay pointed.

"We helped defeat him. The final act was achieved by Tori, Shane and Dustin. I doubt you remember this but when Dustin was kidnapped, during that battle with that monster, they did again what they'd done to Lothor. It's called a 'Storm Stream'."

Trev cut in. "But that's just an old ninja myth."

"Myths always have some hold in reality." Cam replied mildly as he rolled the scroll up once more.

"What's a 'Storm Stream?'" Eva asked, watching him replace the scroll.

"It's the ultimate of Wind Ninja abilities and can only be achieved by three ninjas of the three elements with a bond stronger than that of families. It combines their ninja energies to create a stream of energy with the power equal to that of a thousand gales. It's a dangerous thing to try; if you're not strong enough it can sap all your ninja energy from you. There are only five Storm Streams that have been recorded. Two of them," he added in a quiet voice, "were achieved by Tori, Dustin and Shane. That's how they defeated Lothor, by driving him into the Abyss of Evil using this Storm Stream. And that's how they saved our lives when Dustin and Marah were kidnapped, by destroying the monster who was trying to destroy us."

Silence followed his explanation. "They were really good rangers, weren't they?" Eva asked, tip of her finger touching the end of the scroll Cam had replaced lengthways. "And they're really good ninjas as well."

Cam nodded, looking at the sharp eyed blue ranger. "They were and they are. One of the best. They would have sacrificed everything if they thought it would save everyone. They sacrificed a lot as it was."

"You all did." Eva said, eyes on him now.

Uncomfortable by eyes that seemed to look right in him, Cam coloured and shrugged, suddenly looking very much like his youngest son. "Well, I suppose we all did." He allowed.

A sudden beep sounded from the computer. Jay stepped back, hands flying up as Cam charged across the room. "I didn't touch it."

"It's all right Jay," Cam replied absentmindedly, fingers a blur as he called up window after window, trying to find the program that had made the warning sound. "I think it's found the frequency. I'm going to try hack into it, see if I can contact David. Hopefully, they're keeping their communication channels open. How exactly does Dayton contact you?"

Jay shrugged but Jeanie spoke up; "through our morphers. I watched him once; it isn't much. He just hits a few buttons and speaks into a microphone set into the control panel. He can't explain it to me – he tried but he was using words I didn't understand and when I tried to clarify, he didn't understand."

"Probably comes from his age," Trev said, eyes scanning the code scrolling down the screen. "Technology melded with magic is something that's been lost through the ages."

"True," Cam agreed. "In fact, Ninja Ops was built about the same time as the academy. No one is quite sure who built it, just as no one knows how built the Zords and…"

He trailed off as footsteps were heard on the steps leading to Ninja Ops.

Shane and Dustin burst into the room, closely followed by Tori, Blake and Hunter. "What is it Cam? What's the emer…" Shane broke off when he finally registered the scene before him. There was Cam, with Trev, Jeanie and his own son in front of the computer he'd never been allowed to touch as a teen. Eva and Ris were frozen in ready stances in front of the little library he'd never really bothered to go through in all the time he'd spent here.

"What the?" Tori brow furrowed and she moved forward. "What's going on here?"

"Er…" When the others looked away, it was left to Trev to explain what had happened.

Shane visibly relaxed. "Is that all?"

Tori immediately rounded on him. "Is that all?" She repeated. "Is that all? My boy is trapped, with no way of getting out, no means of communication and you say 'is that all?'!"

Shane, backing away from her tirade, held up both hands in surrender. "I didn't mean it that way. I just meant, well, I was afraid it was Lothor again. Or Mesagog. This is a pretty small deal compared."

Shane knew he'd said the wrong thing when Tori narrowed her eyes. "I didn't mean it that way. I just…" he looked over to Blake, who held up his own hands and backed away. There was no way he was getting in front of Tori when she was on the warpath. "It's not that I'm not worried about David. I am. It's just…"

"Stop trying to make things better Shane because you'll only make things worse," Dustin advised, echoing advice given to him by his old Storm Chargers boss, Kelly.

"Good idea," Tori shot out before turning back to Cam. He pulled his expression back to its usual staidness before she saw the unholy grin on his face. But it had been amusing to watch big tough Shane being chewed out by the much slighter Tori. "Cam, what've you got?"

"The frequency the kids use. I've been scanning the room, running through several frequencies to see which one is bouncing off the kids' morphers. I just found it when you lot came blundering down the stairs."

"We did not blunder," Hunter retorted. "We rushed down the stairs."

"Why did you come here anyway?" Jeanie asked.

"This," Blake put his hand under his collar, tugged out a necklace he always wore. It was a round circular pendant with the sign of the Wind Ninja academy on it. "It beeped. It's an old fallback of Cam's, in case Lothor ever came back."

"Which he did," Cam added.

"Which he did," Shane repeated. "Anyway, it beeped and we all assumed you'd called us to this place. Especially with the monster attacking the downtown area."

The teens jolted. "What?"

"There's a monster attack going on? Right now?"

"Uh…yeah," Dustin said. "You don't know?"

"Don't you think they'd be there?" Tori shot out.

"Dayton usually tells us about these attacks. We totally didn't think about what to do if Pleance attacked," Jay admitted.

"We've got to split up. Jeanie, you and I are going to stay here, help dad. You guys will have to fight them for now."

Jay grinned at Trev. "No problem. More a…I mean butts for us to kick," he said at the look on his dad's face.

Eva and Ris joined him at the centre of the room, near to where Shane, Tori and Dustin had morphed many times. "Ready?" Eva asked of her comrades. They all stood, their legs shoulder width apart, their arms at their sides.

"Ready!"

Eva raised her arm cross wise, and her bracelet flashed, turning into a light blue morpher the shape of a griffin's head.

"Griffin Rider, Ranger Form!"

"Minotaur Rider, Ranger Form!"

"Phoenix Rider, Ranger Form!"

Lights of their signature colour enveloped each teen, swirling from their head down, dissipating at their feet. For the first time, the older rangers watched the new generation transform.

Eva, dressed in light blue, her features hidden by her helmet's visor, looked at Trev, who nodded. She lifted her hand in a half salute and they were gone.

Tori pushed her hair out of her face, shaking her head. "Ranger speed. There's something I really miss."

"Not the helmet hair," Dustin joked with a grin.

Tori managed a smile even as her blue eyes went dark with concern. "Definitely not the helmet hair."

* * *

"How long do you think we've been stuck in here?"

Dayton opened his eyes to see David had, once again, began to pace. The blond haired ranger was acting very much like a caged animal, pacing the length of his confines again and again. "I do not know."

David, facing the craggy wall of the command base, whirled round to pace the length of it again. "What do you think is going out there?"

Dayton weighed his considerations. "It is most probable that Pleance has launched a monster attack. His Frissons would have definitely reported to him that you have become trapped in here along with me. He will see this as a time when the team is weakened."

"The others will be trying to get us out," David said, staring at the blank screen hanging in the middle of the chamber. "I'm sure of that. I don't know how they'll go about it but I've got no doubt they'll be trying to get us out."

"I have no doubt in mind as well. In the mean time, shall we eat?"

David stopped his pacing to turn his head and stare at Dayton. "What?"

"Shall we eat?" Dayton repeated, rising to his feet. "Eva has been teaching me how to cook the foods of this time. I am not that proficient as yet but I have become very adept at cooking, what is it called? Ah, yes, pasta."

David continued staring as Dayton walked across the large chamber to the little hall that he knew, that they all knew, led to the training rooms. And beyond the training rooms lay Dayton's private quarters. None of them, to David's knowledge, had never been there. "Eva's been teaching you to cook."

"Yes. With little successes. She was particularly pleased when I mastered the ability to fry fries. Would you like them, along with the pasta?"

"You eat fries with pasta?"

Dayton nodded. "They are really quite delicious."

"Pasta and fries? You know what's weird?" David grinned, began to follow Dayton. "I've never actually tried that particular combination."


	6. A Transmission!

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to Disney/Haim Saban

* * *

**

"Would you look at that? Pleance is really getting shoddy with his work. Those monsters of his are getting uglier and uglier."

Eva couldn't help but grin at Jay's comments, purposely spoken as loudly as possible to rile Pleance's underlings. "I think that's why they're called monsters," she said in answer to Jay.

The monster, a beast with four legs and a tiger's head, let out an ear splitting roar that rattled the three ranger's bones. Eva shook her head to clear the ringing in her ears. "That actually hurt," Ris muttered, rubbing her helmet where her ears were. "What a jerk off. Screaming just because of a few insults. The other monsters didn't get sulky this quickly."

Jay's smile was wicked under his visor. "Guess it's time to show him how we respond to tantrums, isn't it?"

He surged forward, fists at the ready. The group of Frissons that appeared as silently and as suddenly at their master was prone to do nearly threw him off his stride. Nearly but not quite.

He hurriedly went into a somersault, slamming his feet into the first two Frisson's faces. They exploded, sending coloured glass like shards around him. Eva and Ris joined him, slamming like missiles into the Frissons. Silvers the colours of the rainbow flew into the air, heading with grim inevitability towards the monster.

Ris broke out of the rabble first. She dropped down, tried to sweep the monster's legs out from under it. No luck. It jumped, and one long arm descended down. Ris managed to roll but still felt the tremors as its wide fist slammed down mere inches from her side. She continued to roll, leapt to her feet as Jay came barrelling out of the dwindling number of Frissons.

He slammed into the monster, side on, sending it stumbling backwards. His fist came up, slammed into its tiger's head, again and again. Without warning, it opened its mouth, trapped Jay's fist in it. Undeterred, he used his other hand, strengthening it and using it in a sideways motion, chopping the side of its neck. It didn't release its hold on his fist, instead clamping down hard enough to nearly pierce the tough glove while its hands came up, holding his body captive. "Let. Go. Off. Me. You. God. Damn. Bastard!" He punctuated each word with a punch of the monster's head.

He still didn't let go of Jay's arm.

Ris flew in from the side, leg outstretched. Her foot hit the monster solidly on the side of his head. He and Jay went tumbling to the ground. The sudden shock made the monster release Jay's fist. He rolled out of reach, shook his hand as he rose to his feet. "Never had that happen before."

"Interesting tactic," Ris agreed, landing beside her cousin. "Didn't work though."

"Hurt like hell," Jay mumbled, rubbing his wrist as he watched, with narrowed eyes, as the monster rose to his feet.

Meanwhile, Eva was just finishing off the last four Frissons. She wanted to get this battle over with quickly, get back to the Ninja Ops and find a way to get David free. She slanted her torso to avoid a raking hand with outstretched claws, grabbed it by the wrist, to catapult it into another Frisson. While they untangled themselves from the ground, Eva ducked under a blow aimed for her visor, slammed her fist into its belly. She bounced up, did a quick two-jab into its face, then turned away to deal with another Frisson. She did a huge kick that arced over its head but followed that up with a short armed punch. Her fist skimmed its chest, landed solidly on its chin. "Two down," she panted and turned to face the ones that had just managed to rise to their feet. "Two to go."

Ris and Jay, in the mean time, were double teaming the monster. Ris, being better at kicks and low attacks while Jay was good at strong punches and close combat. They worked off each other, Ris often ducking under Jay to attack the monster's legs, attempting to unbalance it.

With another of the bone rattling huge roar, the monster's fist slammed into the side of Jay's helmet, sent him reeling. Eva and Ris watched in frozen horror as he hit the ground, his helmet knocking hard against the unforgiving concrete.

* * *

"Okay. Is the transmitter set up?"

"Yep," Trev reported.

"Receiver?"

"Ready to go," Jeanie answered.

"Let's do this then."

Tori, Blake, Hunter, Shane and Dustin watched, totally bemused as the three worked. Trev was fiddling with what looked to them like an overgrown remote control with a screen set into it. Jeanie was manning a mini satellite dish set into another overgrown remote control. Cam sat in front of his computer, tapping away at his keyboard. All seemed to know exactly what they were doing.

The others had no idea what they were doing, or even what they were talking about. When Cam had tried to explain to them, they'd blanked out, exactly as they'd had twenty years ago whenever he'd tried to explain the intricacies of his duty as techie.

"Trev, you haven't got the frequency right."

"Yes I have. Wait a minute…okay. It was a mite off. Now it should be okay."

"Transmitting frequency…now."

"Okay. Got it. Magnifying," Trev shifted a dial on the transmitter – or, as Dustin had called it, his new Big Toy – narrowed his eyes in concentration at the read out on the screen. His glasses slid down his nose and he pushed it up in a move so reminiscent of his dad that Tori had to smile. "Transmitting now."

"What now?" Shane asked after a while.

"We wait."

"Wait?" Dustin muttered at Cam's comment. "For what?"

"Transmission!" Jeanie practically yelled as she hopped up and down. "I can't believe it worked! We've got a transmission! Rerouting."

"Downloading…got it! I'm decoding it now."

"What is it?" As one, the ninja teachers surged forward, crowding around Cam's chair, just like they had years before.

"It's a message, from David. It's delayed and I have to decode the encryption but it should, hopefully, open up communication lines."

"What've we got?" Trev asked, itching to leave his station but knowing he'd get blasted if he did.

"The decoding is difficult. I don't understand some of this code but I've seen it before. While I was checking out the Zord specs. I can work around it…"

"Uncle Cam? Uncle Cam, what're you…how'd you get this…what's going on?"

"Oh. Oh David!" With a huge grin, Tori grabbed her husband's arm as her son's voice flowed from the speakers.

"David. We've managed to open up the communication lines but it's complicated and the feed is delayed. What I need is to talk to the one who does the tech work. Dayton," he said, catching Jeanie mouthing his name from the corner of his eye. "I need to talk to Dayton."

* * *

David listened to the voice coming from his bracelet. Calm and cool, it brought a flood of relief through his system. His cousins and his family were out there, trying to help him.

Dayton looked up from his book at the mention of his name. "Who is that?"

"It's Uncle Cam. He's found a way to talk to us." David held out his wrist. "He wants to talk to you."


	7. Kicking The Monster's Ass

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to Disney/Haim Saban

* * *

**

Eva had taken care of the Frissons and was now distracting the monster while Ris attempted to heal Jay, with little success. She pressed her hands to his belly, hoping like hell the healing light she knew should emanate from her would find its way to his head.

Behind her, a cry broke from Eva's lips as the monster threw her to the ground. Yet, still she gained her feet, gritting her teeth, and launched herself at him again. She blocked a slice to her belly, a punch to her jaw, and slammed her helmet into its tiger snout. Stars danced in front of her eyes but she shook her head to clear them and narrowly blocked a knee to her belly. She pushed away, whirled back suddenly, legs raised in a deadly kick. It connected with the monster's belly, sent him staggering back.

"Good kick!"

The call came from Jay, who was finally getting to his feet, with Ris's help. Relief flooded Eva's senses. "I like to think so too."

Jay straightened away from Ris and, in typical Jay fashion, charged the monster while ignoring Ris's warning. A clawed hand lashed out. He twisted mid charged, grabbed the wrist and slammed his foot into the monster's thick neck. It let out a sickening choking sound while Eva flew in, kicked it solidly on the head. Its head snapped round and it fell onto its back. Before the three rangers could take advantage, it had leapt to its feet.

Something was forming into its glowing mouth. "Laser!" Ris yelled the warning and jumped forward, pushing Jay down.

Eva somersaulted to the side, the laser skimming close enough for her to feel its scorching heat, even through her suit. She hissed in a breath, landed on her foot and knee. Jay and Ris slowly rose to their feet. The sudden fall had jolted Jay's already fragile head wound. He shook his head to shake out the dizziness while Ris subtly moved in front of him to shield him. Eva bounded forward, her Griffin's Bow already drawn, an arrow of bright blue light forming in its cradle, aimed straight for the tiger's head. She released it as the monster made ready to charge forward, catching it straight between the eyes. It toppled back.

Eva looked over her shoulder at the black and yellow rangers. "You all right?"

Jay nodded. "I'm good."

Ris's answer was simple; "Phoenix's Daggers!"

Light flashed from the gem stitched into her glove, solidifying into two wicked looking daggers in her hands. The yellow hilts were the same golden yellow colour as her ranger suit. She slid her legs a little further apart, lifted the daggers so the sharp blades glistened in the light.

"I take it you're all right."

Ris laughed at Eva's comment. "Yeah, I'm all right."

"Don't want to left out. Minotaur's Sabre!"

The black bladed weapon appeared in Jay's gloved hands in the same way Ris's weapons had appeared in her hands, in the same way Eva's had. "Let's get it on."

Ris made a face, even though it couldn't be seen through her dark visor. "Do you realise how wrong it sounds."

"Now I do." He muttered as the monster rose to its four feet again and let out a furious roar. "Think we made him mad?"

"Without a doubt," Eva said with a wicked grin. She drew another arrow through the air, and released it. The laser like bolt raced through the air, this time striking the monster on its shoulder.

It let out the roar of a wounded animal but at least the arrow had slowed its charge somewhat. Jay steadied himself by shifting his feet so they were shoulder width apart. He lifted his sabre, holding it in a two handed grip.

And Ris attacked. Her daggers flashed in the air, two glinting pieces of deadly metal, slashing at the monster. She caught him on its neck, its chest. She aimed for its eyes but its arm came up, caught her in her middle and sent her spinning to the side.

Another blue laser arrow slammed into him, this time into his gut. And then another, that left a burning line across the side of his head. Before she could release a third, it was charging towards her, too near for her to let the arrow fly.

Jay came to her rescue, black blade whirling in the air before slamming into the monster's head. It howled, turned, huge clawed hand swiping at him. He managed to nip back, then lunged forward again, sabre raised to the monster's chest height.

It never even touched the monster. The laser from its mouth blasted Jay right on the belly, sent him slamming into the nearest wall – which was a good fifty feet away.

"Jay!"

It was Eva who yelled. She fired off five arrows all at once to deter to monster before running for Jay's crumpled form. Panic and fear nearly stopped up her throat when she saw he'd de-morphed. Oh god. This was not going well at all.

Ris was fighting the monster now, trying to stop him from advancing towards Jay and Eva. But she was losing. Claws slashed through the air, hit her on the helmet hard enough to send stars spinning before her eyes. She stumbled back, raised her daggers

And two hot pink lasers slammed into the monster's heat, then another two and another two. Jeanie!

There she was, already suited up, her Unicorn's Slings in her hands, twirling them as in their cradles formed two pink balls. "Need help?" She asked and Ris could practically hear the grin in her voice.

"That'd be nice," the yellow ranger replied, shifting her grip on her daggers.

"Coming right up!"

As she spoke, the lasers catapulted out of their cradles and hit the monster, setting off two explosions on its body powerful enough to send it stumbling back. When it was far enough from Ris that she wouldn't be hurt by his attack, Trev came in, his own weapon, the Centaur's Staff, whirling with only one deadly intent. He slammed it on the top of the monster's head, changed his grip and hit it on the side of its neck.

Meanwhile, David joined Eva at Jay's still body. She stared at his helmet face in shock. "David! How'd you…?"

He pulled Jay's arm over his shoulder, lurched to his feet. Eva hurriedly pulled Jay's other arm around her shoulder.

"There'll be time for explanations later," he said. "Let's just get Jay out of the line of fire for now."

She nodded and, together, they dragged the black ranger's limp body from the battle ground.

Ris somersaulted high above the monster's head as Jeanie fired off two more lasers to stop it from attacking her cousin. Trev was been hit and was rising to his feet, albeit a little unsteadily, his staff swinging in his loose grip. He took up his staff in his other hand, took a moment to steel himself, and attacked.

Blow after blow that stunned the monster enough for Ris to come in with her daggers, the light flashing off them as she sliced and thrust. And then David got into the action, his Dragon's Sword with its distinct red hilt, already drawn. Working in sync with Ris, he slashed and fought off any attack the monster attempted.

A safe distance away, Eva had de-morphed so she didn't look conspicuous. She knelt over Jay, trying to wake him up. An ugly cut on his forehead was slowly healing before her eyes but it wasn't, she feared, fast enough. She could head the other rangers' cries as they were hit and she couldn't help but wonder how long they'd be able to last.

"Jay! Jay, damnit! You have to wake up! They need us!"

She'd barely finished yelling the last sentence when Jay prised his eyelids open. "They?" He mumbled. "What?"

"Jeanie and Trev got David out," she said urgently. "They're fighting now. I don't know how long they can hold out…"

"David?" Slowly, as slow and deliberate as an old man, Jay got to his feet, nearly staggered but Eva swooped in, holding him up by flinging her arms around his waist and moving her shoulder under his. "Jeanie? Trev?"

A cry rent the air; Ris. Like he'd been slapped to his senses, Jay straightened. "Ris!"

"Come on! Morph!" Sensing he could stand on his own now, Eva took off at a run, calling as she went; "Griffin Rider, Ranger Form!"

"Minotaur Rider, Ranger Form!"

Trev was still grappling with the monster, his staff trapped by his hands. Ris was rising from behind it, her daggers raised and ready. David was beside Jeanie, panting, hand pressed to his belly, his sword dragging on the ground. Jeanie was providing cover fire.

David's head whirled round when he heard Eva and Jay running up. "Hey! Wait! You just got de-morphed! You sure you're ready to fight?"

Jay nodded. "More than ready. I'm taking this bastard down."

"We are," David corrected. "Looks like this bastard will only go down with one thing."

"Then let's stop talking and do it before Trev and Ris are knocked out," Jeanie suggested, letting loose a salvo of lasers.

"Griffin's Bow!"

With her bow in her hands, Eva's light blue arrows joined Jeanie's hot pink lasers. The barrage was enough to make the monster release Trev's staff, for the two rangers to fall back. "Spirit Cannon!" David ordered, already moving his sword into position.

"Minotaur's Sabre!" Jay called, his weapon appearing in hand in time for him to add it to the growing weapon. "Ready?"

"Just fire," Ris growled, her voice uncharacteristically angry.

"Agreed," David said and squeezed the trigger.

A swirling grey mass rocketed out the mouth of the cannon, heading with only one target; the monster. It roared, a laser shooting out of its mouth to slam into the grey mass – with no effect. Realising it had no choice, it turned to flee, only to be enveloped. The rangers let out a slow collective sigh as it exploded into little bits.

That is, until a yellow glow began to surround the smouldering remains.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me." Jay glared at the remains.

"You know Pleance never kids," David muttered, his voice dark. "Red Dragon Zord!"

"Black Minotaur Zord!"

"Pink Unicorn Zord!"

"Green Centaur Zord!"

"Yellow Phoenix Zord!"

"Blue Griffin Zord!"

The six Zords came from seemingly nowhere, the Dragon, Griffin and Phoenix Zords winging above the other three. Red, black, pink, green, yellow, blue and gold, with piercing gold eyes, they were awe inspiring and just what was needed.

The Rangers leapt and were drawn into their respective Zord's cockpit. "Let's just make the Megazord and get this over with," Jay suggested. "My muscles ache."

"I hear you," Ris said.

"Let's do it," David said, concern for Jay obviously making his decision easy. "Rangers, form the Megazord!"

As if the Zords themselves had heard, they moved of their own accord. The Minotaur became the torso and legs, the Unicorn and Centaur becoming its arms. On its back, the Griffin and Phoenix became long fluttering wings. And the Dragon completed the humanoid Zord by becoming a helmeted head.

They reared up, hundreds of feet above the warehouses, matching the resurrected monster in both height and breadth. And temper.

Both opponents rushed each other at the same time. The warehouses trembled with each thunder step. Suddenly, as the monster reached out with claw tipped hands the size of four wheel drives, the Megazord's wings flapped, once, twice, thrice, to launch it in the air. It twisted, much like a person would, to face the monster as it turned back round, letting out a furious roar that its quarry was in the air and unreachable.

The Megazord's human hands reached out, forming a cup. It was blasted through the air as a column of liquid fire rocketed from its two palms, slamming into the monster.

Ris and Eva adjusted the wings, bringing them closer to the monster again.

David held out his hands, took a deep breath and called out; "Spirit's Sword!"

Clear as water, deadly as a bomb and far larger than an ordinary sword, the sword formed from nowhere, appearing in the Megazord's hand in almost an instant.

The Megazord's second hand lifted, clasped the sword's giant hilt. The wings flapped, and the giant robot shot forward. The sword, lifted, swiped and fell.

And, behind the Megazord, the monster exploded with one final agonised roar.


	8. Pressens For The Rangers

**Disclaimer: Everything you recognize belongs to Disney/Haim Saban

* * *

**

"Here."

Standing in the empty lot where the portal to the command base had once been, Dayton handed out what looked like coloured badges he instructed the rangers to attach to their bracelets-cum-morphers. Jay inspected his. "What is it?"

"It is, in the language of my people, a _pressen._ It opens one portal for one person to enter through. I have programmed yours to open to the command base. You may access it where ever you wish."

"And to get out?" Jeanie asked, fixing the device to her bracelet. She found Dayton had made it so it fixed exactly into part of the swirling pattern of the bracelet.

"I will program the portal to send you where ever you wish to go. I have also made modifications so that if the portals are ever destroyed, our way of communicating with one another will not be as well."

"I'm not going to ask how you did it," Trev said. "I'm curious. But I'm not going to ask how you did it."

"I will probably be unable to explain," Dayton admitted.

"What I'd like an explanation to," David said, looking up from putting the _pressen_ onto his morpher, "is how Pleance found us, closed the portal and our communication lines."

"The portal and communication lines were connected, I think. I am not too sure; it is the Centaur who designed this, the Life Spirits who built it – all without my knowledge. I only know how to work it but I have learnt to make modifications."

"The Griffin must have foreseen a day when it was needed," Eva said.

Dayton nodded. "Yes, I believe so."

"We've got to get home," Jeanie said, stifling a yawn. "Mum, dad, Uncle Cam and all our other assorted relatives want the low down of what happened today. And Aunt Tori's getting antsy; she wants to make sure you're all right, David."

"I'm fine," he replied automatically.

"You know that, we know that. She doesn't," Jeanie shot back in an arched voice.

"Go," Dayton said. "You need your rest."

"So do you," Eva pointed out.

He nodded. "I will take it. Go."

The rangers nodded, and began walking away. Watching them, Dayton stepped back, and the portal embraced him. His last view was that of six silhouettes walking towards the setting sun. They looked tall, strong and fit for another day.

And, better yet, he thought, they were.

* * *

_A/N: I'm sorry, I know the ending is very rushed but I thought the battle scene was dragging and needed to be wrapped up soon. This chapter pretty much wraps up the problem of the portal. Episode 9 coming soon! (I hope...)_


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